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ON YOUR MARKSBERRY, GET SETSBERRY… Kentucky Republicans hope a little-known businessman running on a green, anti-coal platform can outflank Democratic Senate candidate Alison Lundergan Grimes from the left — much the way Democrats have cheered on tea party challengers who torment mainstream GOP candidates. As ME noted yesterday, Ed Marksberry, a loquacious consultant for a home construction business, will run as an independent for the seat of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. While that leaves Grimes with an even clearer path for her party’s nod, it opens the possibility that Marksberry will be a Ralph Nader-like spoiler who siphons votes from the state’s liberal wing. “There’s never been a strong, or any, voice that really wants to tackle the negative economic impacts of coal here in Kentucky and also the environmental and health impacts,” Marksberry told POLITICO on Tuesday. Darren Goode has the smart take for Pros: http://politico.pro/19xhFCa

MEANWHILE, IN VIRGINIA: EPA’s new regulations to restrict carbon emissions from future power plants has been dividing politicians across the country, but Virginia gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe appears to be sitting on the fence. And his conservative opponent is taking notice. Republican Ken Cuccinelli bashed McAuliffe yesterday for not immediately denouncing the regulation, and he’s added a countdown clock to his website that highlights how long it’s taking McAuliffe to stake out a position on the rule. Andrew Restuccia: http://politico.pro/16GfEBm

STATE ANALYSIS UNDERESTIAMTES KXL IMPACT ON ENDANGERED SPECIES — REPORT: The Keystone XL pipeline could have devastating effects on at least a dozen threatened and endangered species and the habitats that lie in the project’s path, according to a new analysis from the Center for Biological Diversity. The report, released Wednesday, found that power lines used to operate the pipeline pose collision threats for birds and bats, construction would disturb 15,500 acres, potentially crushing endangered foxes with young in their dens, and the project itself would exacerbate climate change by increasing production of the oil sands. The analysis echoes some concerns about impacts to sensitive species raised by the Interior Department. More: http://politico.pro/1b4muVx.

BUT CAN McCARTHY DO THE “QUEEN ELIZABETH WAVE”? Today EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy starts the first leg of a three-day tour to promote the agency’s proposed carbon limits for new power plants and the administration’s climate plan to students and businesses. McCarthy will speak on a panel today at the Clinton Global Initiative, alongside officials from the Captain Planet Foundation, Children’s Environmental Literacy Foundation, African Wildlife Foundation and Earth University. She’ll head to Ann Arbor Thursday to speak at the University of Michigan Law School. The Midwest college town tour continues Friday in Madison, Wis., where McCarthy will deliver a keynote address at the annual meeting of Trout Unlimited. She’ll also join Madison Mayor Paul Soglin to highlight community sustainability efforts.

MESSINA LANDS AT LOW-CARBON FUEL FIRM: Jim Messina, the longtime Obama aide who ran the president’s 2012 reelection campaign, has joined the board of directors of LanzaTech, which makes low-carbon fuels and chemicals out of waste gases or syngas. The company, which Messina said is “shattering current paradigms and changing the rules about energy production,” is apparently hoping to use Messina's talents with technology, messaging and communications. “Social networks, digital communications and other new media have become instrumental in raising awareness and shaping opinion of new ideas and I look forward to working with such a brilliant team to help further craft a compelling narrative and explore exciting and creative ways to deliver it across the globe,” Messina said.

— Coincidentally, LanzaTech just recently got a $4 million grant from ARPA-E to partner with several universities on technology to convert waste methane into low-carbon fuels. The Washington Times noted last week that one of LanzaTech's financers, Vinod Khosla, hosted a June fundraiser for Democrats that was attended by Obama: http://bit.ly/16v4PC6.

OBAMA PICKS APPLE EXEC FOR TOP STATE DEPARTMENT ENERGY POSITION: President Barack Obama has nominated Catherine Ann Novelli to be undersecretary for economic growth, energy and the environment at the State Department. Currently, Novelli is vice president of worldwide government affairs at Apple. Sharp readers may remember Novelli is the Apple executive who penned the company’s letter dropping its membership the U.S. Chamber of Commerce back in 2009 (PDF, via the New York Times: http://bit.ly/Ex2w5). Before landing at Apple, she was a partner at Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP, an assistant U.S. trade representative and she worked in the Office of the General Counsel at the Department of Commerce.

ORAL ARGUMENTS TODAY OVER NUCLEAR WASTE FEE CASE: The Energy Department is back in court today to defend its decision to continue collecting the nuclear waste fee for a future repository, even though the Obama administration has continued to treat the Yucca Mountain project as “unworkable.” The agency got dragged over the coals in court last year for not doing a sufficient analysis to determine if 0.1-cent per nuclear-generated kilowatt-hour was still an appropriate amount to charge (Senior Circuit Judge Laurence Silberman likened former Energy Secretary Steven Chu to an ostrich: http://politico.pro/14EcEbd).

But when the agency came back with a court-ordered analysis in January, the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, which launched the original lawsuit, pounced. The group called DOE’s work “defective” and “fundamentally flawed,” and asked the court to reopen the case. Interestingly, DOE came back this spring defending its position by arguing that the Nuclear Waste Policy Act doesn’t have any language that allows the fee to be suspended. Oral arguments are scheduled for 9:30 a.m. in the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse.

** A recent study shows America’s oil & natural gas companies are top investors in zero- and low-greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions technologies. Between 2000 and 2012, the industry invested $81 billion in GHG mitigation; that’s more than the federal government and nearly as much as all other industries combined. On Twitter @EnergyTomorrow or http://bit.ly/1aZK7BV **

FERC DUE TO FILE ORDER 1000 BRIEF TODAY: FERC is scheduled to file its most substantive brief in a lawsuit challenging the agency’s 2011 cost allocation and transmission planning rule, Order 1000, by close of business today. Critics of Order 1000 argue that the agency exceeded its authority by mandating transmission planning, which previously had been conducted voluntarily with FERC input. All final briefs are due December 13.

WONK ALERT — EIA DEFENDS RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTIONS: Energy Information Administration chief Adam Sieminski says his agency’s modeling of projected renewable energy growth reflects federal and state laws and other information at the time reports are issued — but that can mean data needs to be updated when incentives such as the production tax credit get a last minute extension. Some scenarios consider subsidy extensions or a potential carbon tax, Sieminski wrote, but projections based on current policies mean “mid-term additions of renewable capacity (or of generating capacity in general) do not approach the boom levels seen in the past 10 years.” Sieminski was responding to a letter sent earlier this month by officials from several groups, including the Environmental Defense Fund and NRDC that alleged EIA’s Annual Energy Outlook reports have included “unreasonably low” projections for renewable energy. His letter: http://politico.pro/14EFHLH.

GOVERNMENT BUYERS LIKE ENERGY EFFICIENCY, ASE-BACKED POLL SAYS: Energy efficiency measures are often the best way to lower energy costs in the long term, but 70 percent of "federal agency purchasing decision makers" say tight budgets and red tape often mar efficiency projects, according to a poll out today backed by the Alliance to Save Energy and Schneider Electric. “The federal government needs to invest in energy efficiency so that agencies can cut waste, become more productive, and save taxpayers money,” ASE President Kateri Callahan said. The poll, conducted in July by Zogby International, surveyed 204 federal employees with purchasing power and has a margin of error of +/- 7 percent. More: http://bit.ly/1gYx15q.

BE AN AGRICULTURE PRO: Pro Agriculture, the second of three new Pro policy areas launching this fall, will debut on Wednesday, Oct. 2 and will feature breaking news and inside analysis from our best-in-the-business reporters. To learn more about Pro Agriculture, e-mail info@politicopro.com or call (703) 341-4600.

— Looks like the EU will defend its right to keep in place a limited carbon emissions market for airlines through 2020. Bloomberg: http://bloom.bg/16GGrgV.

— Stanford ecologist David Lobell, who has studied the connections between climate change, agriculture and food security, is among this year's Macarthur fellows. New York Times: http://nyti.ms/19CLDU3.

— Environmental groups are worried that U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman is pressuring the EU to give bitumen, including from Canada, a better environmental rating. Huffington Post: http://huff.to/18UcUpQ.

— The Senate Select Committee on Ethics has dismissed Sen. David Vitter's complaint against Senate Democratic leaders. Manu Raju and John Bresnahan: http://politi.co/18nQyLa.

THAT’S ALL FOR ME. See you on the flip side.

** A recent study shows America’s oil & natural gas companies are top investors in zero- and low-greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions technologies. Between 2000 and 2012, the industry invested $81 billion in GHG mitigation; that’s more than the federal government and nearly as much as all other industries combined. What's more, the oil & natural gas industry has invested $11 billion in domestic wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and other non-hydrocarbon resources between 2011 and 2012 — one out of every six dollars invested. These investments in non-hydrocarbon energy sources and pioneering GHG mitigation technologies not only lower carbon emissions, but create high-tech jobs and advance America's global competitiveness. Taken as a whole, these and other investments have allowed the industry to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by the equivalent of 53.6 million metric tons of CO2 — equal to taking 10.8 million cars off the road. On Twitter @EnergyTomorrow or http://bit.ly/1aZK7BV **